Systems, methods, and apparatuses for facilitating allocation of a common resource to a terminal
View Patent ↗Systems, methods, and apparatuses are provided for facilitating allocation of a common resource to a terminal. A method may include transmitting one or more inbound packet data units including an indication of a category of a terminal and an indication of an identity of the terminal to a network node responsible for managing allocation of a common resource to the terminal. The method may further include receiving an absolute grant of a portion of the common resource to the terminal, wherein the absolute grant is issued by the network node based at least in part upon the transmitted indication of the category of the terminal. Corresponding systems and apparatuses are also provided.
1. A method comprising:
causing transmission of one or more inbound packet data units comprising an indication of a category of a terminal and an indication of an identity of the terminal to a network node responsible for managing allocation of a common resource to the terminal, wherein the category of the terminal comprises a set of physical layer protocol capabilities of the terminal that includes an amount of memory of the terminal available for use of the common resource and a physical processing capability of the terminal available for use of the common resource; and
receiving an absolute grant of a portion of the common resource to the terminal, wherein the absolute grant is issued by the network node based at least in part upon the transmitted indication of the category of the terminal.
2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the common resource comprises an enhanced dedicated channel resource.
3. The method of claim 1 , wherein causing transmission of one or more inbound packet data units comprises causing transmission of the one or more inbound packet data units over an enhanced data channel, and wherein the terminal is in one or more of CELL_FACH state or idle mode.
4. An apparatus comprising at least one processor and at least one memory storing computer program code, wherein the at least one memory and stored computer program code are configured, with the at least one processor, to cause the apparatus to at least:
cause transmission of one or more inbound packet data units comprising an indication of a category of the apparatus and an indication of an identity of the apparatus to a network node responsible for managing allocation of a common resource to the apparatus, wherein the category of the apparatus comprises a set of physical layer protocol capabilities of the apparatus that includes an amount of memory of the terminal available for use of the common resource and a physical processing capability of the terminal available for use of the common resource; and
receive an absolute grant of a portion of the common resource to the apparatus, wherein the absolute grant is issued by the network node based at least in part upon the transmitted indication of the category of the apparatus.
5. The apparatus of claim 4 , wherein the common resource comprises an enhanced dedicated channel resource.
6. The apparatus of claim 4 , wherein the at least one memory and stored computer program code are configured, with the at least one processor, to cause the apparatus to cause transmission of one or more inbound packet data units by causing transmission of one or more inbound packet data units comprising a header including the indication of the category of the apparatus and the indication of the identity of the apparatus.
7. The apparatus of claim 6 , wherein the header further comprises a logical channel identification field comprising an indication that the header also includes the indication of the category of the apparatus and the indication of the identity of the apparatus.
8. The apparatus of claim 4 , wherein the at least one memory and stored computer program code are configured, with the at least one processor, to cause the apparatus to cause transmission of one or more inbound packet data units by causing transmission of the one or more inbound packet data units over an enhanced data channel, and wherein the apparatus is in one or more of CELL_FACH state or idle mode.
9. The apparatus of claim 4 , wherein the at least one memory and stored computer program code are configured, with the at least one processor, to cause the apparatus to cause transmission of one or more inbound packet data units by causing transmission of one or more medium access control inbound packet data units.
10. The apparatus of claim 9 , wherein the at least one memory and stored computer program code are configured, with the at least one processor, to cause the apparatus to cause transmission of the one or more medium access control inbound packet data units by causing transmission of one or more medium access control inbound packet data units comprising the indication of the category of the apparatus and the indication of the identity of the apparatus only during a collision resolution phase, and wherein the at least one memory and stored computer program code are configured, with the at least one processor, to further cause the apparatus to:
following conclusion of the collision resolution phase and in response to receipt of the absolute grant, cause transmission of one or more medium access control inbound packet data units without the indication of the category of the apparatus and without the indication of the identity of the apparatus.
11. The apparatus of claim 4 , wherein the at least one memory and stored computer program code are configured, with the at least one processor, to cause the apparatus to cause transmission of one or more inbound packet data by causing transmission of one or more inbound packet data units over one or more of a dedicated traffic channel or a dedicated control channel.
12. The apparatus of claim 4 , wherein the indication of the identity of the apparatus comprises an enhanced dedicated channel radio network temporary identifier of the apparatus.
13. The apparatus of claim 4 , wherein the indication of the category of the apparatus indicates a set of physical layer protocol capabilities of the apparatus.
14. The apparatus of claim 4 , wherein the at least one memory and stored computer program code are configured, with the at least one processor, to cause the apparatus to receive the absolute grant on an enhanced absolute grant channel along with the indication of the identity of the apparatus.
15. The apparatus of claim 4 , wherein the apparatus comprises or is embodied on a mobile phone, the mobile phone comprising a user interface configured to:
facilitate user control of at least some functions of the mobile phone through use of a display; and
cause at least a portion of a user interface of the mobile phone to be displayed on the display to facilitate user control of at least some functions of the mobile phone.
16. A computer program product comprising at least one non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having computer-readable program instructions stored therein, wherein the computer-readable program instructions, when executed, cause:
transmission of one or more inbound packet data units comprising an indication of a category of a terminal and an indication of an identity of the terminal to a network node responsible for managing allocation of a common resource to the terminal, wherein the category of the terminal comprises a set of physical layer protocol capabilities of the terminal that includes an amount of memory of the terminal available for use of the common resource and a physical processing capability of the terminal available for use of the common resource; and
receipt of an absolute grant of a portion of the common resource to the terminal, wherein the absolute grant is issued by the network node based at least in part upon the transmitted indication of the category of the terminal.
17. The computer program product of claim 16 , wherein the common resource comprises an enhanced dedicated channel resource.
18. The computer program product of claim 16 , wherein the computer program product is embodied on a mobile phone.
19. An apparatus comprising at least one processor and at least one memory storing computer program code, wherein the at least one memory and stored computer program code are configured, with the at least one processor, to cause the apparatus to at least:
receive one or more inbound packet data units sent by a terminal, wherein the received inbound packet data units comprise an indication of a category of the terminal and an indication of an identity of the terminal, wherein the category of the terminal comprises a set of physical layer protocol capabilities of the terminal that includes an amount of memory of the terminal available for use of the common resource and a physical processing capability of the terminal available for use of the common resource;
allocate a portion of a common resource to the terminal based at least in part upon the received category of the terminal; and
cause transmission of an absolute grant of the allocated portion of the common resource to the terminal.
20. The apparatus of claim 19 , wherein the common resource comprises an enhanced dedicated channel resource.